


One Question Left

by KatHowellLester



Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Cliche, M/M, Secret Admirer, dorky as shit, super fluffy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-26
Updated: 2016-04-26
Packaged: 2018-06-04 14:13:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,755
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6661759
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KatHowellLester/pseuds/KatHowellLester
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Spencer has a secret admirer named H</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter One

Spencer was running late, which wasn’t normal for him. He walked as fast as he could without breaking into a sprint, trying to make it to the roundtable on time. He opened the door to the bullpen and walked to his cubicle, only to see a bouquet of pink, purple, and white tulips. He pulled the small card from the center and read it. On the front of the envelope it simply said Spencer Reid; he opened the envelope and read the note, which said: _Happy Birthday, Sweetheart. Love, H_. Spencer furrowed his brow and put the note back in the envelope.

“Who sent you flowers?” Derek asked.

“I don’t know. It was just signed H. It got through security so I guess they’re okay. Should I ask Hotch?” Spencer was still holding the card in his hands and he didn’t want to get rid of the flowers because the team always forgot his birthday and even if it was an unsub that had sent them, at least they remembered.

“I think it would be a good idea. But you should wait, because we have a case.” Spencer nodded and followed Derek up the stairs and to the roundtable.

“Hey, Spence, who sent you flowers?” JJ asked. Spencer just shrugged and looked through the case file.

“Who got flowers?” Dave questioned as he walked in, Aaron following behind.

“Spencer’s got a secret admirer,” Derek teased, smiling.

“Where’s Prentiss?” Aaron ignored the conversation.

“Right here. Sorry, I’m late. I got caught up in traffic.” Emily said as she rushed in and sat down next to JJ. The case was near Quantico so the team didn’t have to travel far, meaning Aaron could have a look at Spencer’s flowers before they had to head off to the case.

“Do you have any idea who could have sent them? Can I see the note?” Spencer shook his head and hesitated before handing Aaron the note. He stopped before opening the envelope and said, ever so quietly, “Happy birthday, by the way, Spencer. Do you have any plans tonight?” Spencer was speechless for a second before he shook his head.

“Well, you do now. I don’t have anything to do today other than work on this case so we should have dinner together. Would that be alright?”

“That’d be great, Hotch, thanks. But, don’t say anything about my birthday. The team hasn’t realised yet and I want to wait it out and see who notices.” Aaron nodded in understanding and opened the note, before placing it back in it’s envelope and handing it back to Spencer.

“Are you riding with me and Dave or Morgan, JJ, and Prentiss?”

“Probably you and Rossi. At least with you two I can speak without being teased. Not that it’s mean, I just don’t feel like being teased for an hour or two without escaping.” Aaron nodded and gestured for them to start walking.

“I don’t think Dave will mind. I’m not even sure if he’s riding with us. I just assumed.” It turned out that Rossi had decided to ride with the other three, leaving Spencer and Aaron alone together in an SUV for two hours.

“Did Rossi choose to ride with the others because of me?” Spencer said after a long silence.

“What? Why would he?”

“I know I annoy the team with statistics and facts and I was just thinking that maybe Rossi didn’t want to spend two hours with me.”

“Spencer, he didn’t choose to ride with the others because of you. We all get a bit annoyed with you, some less than others, but it’s usually when we are stressed and under a lot of pressure. It’s not your fault. I can’t speak for the others, but I like listening to your ramblings. They’re usually interesting.”

“Thanks, Hotch. Hey, do you think I should get rid of the flowers that I got this morning? Or do you think they’re safe to keep?”

“I think they’re fine. Are you sure you don’t have an idea about who they could be from? It was signed H, wasn’t it? Do you know anyone who goes by H or something that starts with H?” Spencer stopped for a second and thought, Could it be Hotch? No, he isn’t into guys, is he? I can’t just ask. I’ll just lie and say no.

“No, I don’t think so. You?” Hotch just shook his head and kept looking forward as he drove.

* * * *

Their dinner was cut short when the unsub was suspected to be somewhere. Spencer was upset about it and decided to go back to the station, claiming to look for something. He finally got a chance with Aaron and a case ruined it.

* * * *

It was a week before Spencer heard from H again. This time, it was a book. The book was Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov. Written on the inside cover was: _“Literature and butterflies are the two sweetest passions known to man.” -Vladimir Nabokov You’ve probably read this, sweetheart, but I haven’t seen you with a copy in the 12 years I’ve known you so I figured you’d enjoy it. Love, H._ Spencer took the book to Hotch and watched him read it, looking for any sign that he knew what it said.

“They’re just small gifts, Spencer. If you’re concerned about it, take the note to Blake. She’s working at Harvard, I think.” Aaron handed the book back and continued working.

“Can I go see her now, sir?” Aaron looked up at the word ‘sir’ since he wasn’t used to being addressed in such a formal way by Spencer.

“Yeah, I’ll take you, just give me a minute.” Spencer nodded and stood at the door.

“Do you want to go in by yourself or do you want me to go with?” Aaron asked when they entered the parking lot.

“I’ll do it myself. I’ll be back out soon.” Aaron nodded and Spencer got out of the car. He knocked on the door to Blake’s office and waited patiently for her to answer. When she did open the door, she invited Spencer in immediately.

“I need your advice and consultation on something personal.”

“Okay, what’s going on? Are you alright?” Blake closed the door and sat next to Spencer on the small couch she kept in her office.

“I’ve gotten two gifts sent to me from someone who goes by H and I wanted your consult on the note left in this book that I found on my desk this morning.” Blake nodded and took the book, reading and studying the words written inside.

“Well, it’s probably a man. And whoever it is isn’t coming off as obsessive or a stalker. I think it’s someone just giving you gifts. You said you needed advice as well?” Blake handed the book back and waited patiently for Spencer to continue.

“I think H might be Hotch. The name fits and he doesn’t seem surprised by the gifts. It’s a wild guess but I just can’t shake the feeling that it might be him.” Blake nodded.

“I can’t tell you for sure whether it is Aaron, but based on the writing in the book, it could be. The handwriting is similar to his and the writing style is as well. If you get something more, bring it by. I’d like to help you with it. I have a class starting in ten minutes but we can talk again soon. Goodbye, Spencer.” Alex gave Spencer a quick hug and headed off to her class, leaving Spencer standing alone outside her office.

“What did she say?” Aaron asked as Spencer climbed back into the SUV.

“Well, it’s not anyone obsessive. And it’s a man. Blake thinks it might just be a secret admirer.”

“That’s good news then. Do you have any ideas on who it could be yet?” Spencer smiled.

“I have an idea of who it could be.” Aaron had a questioning look on his face.

“I’m guessing you aren’t going to tell me?” Spencer laughed and shook his head.

* * * *

The next gift was on the jet and it was a pair of black converse. Spencer assumed that they were to replace the pair that were started to be too worn to be comfortable.

“Now what did H give you? How did he get it on the jet?” Emily asked.

“Maybe it’s someone on the team?” Penelope said from behind him. She was joining them for the case they had taken in California that dealt with a serial killer that chose his victims by hacking into their computers and phones to stalk them.

“It’s not me,” Derek said laughing as he took a seat.

“I’m married,” JJ said, showing her ring.

“Sorry, Reid. You’re not my type.” Rossi was smiling as the team laughed at him.

“Well, it’s either Penelope or Hotch because it’s not me,” Emily laughed as she spoke.

Penelope held her hands up, “Sorry, but I’ve got a boyfriend and Chocolate Thunder over there.” Penelope pointed to Derek and sat next to him. But Hotch ignored the conversation as he was sat next to Spencer reading the case file.

“Hey, Hotch, you gotta crush on Spencer?” Derek asked, not expecting an actual answer.

“If I did, I wouldn’t tell you before I tell Spencer, would I?” Aaron didn’t even look up from the file. Everyone on the jet shared odd looks but Spencer didn’t understand why and just pulled Lolita from his bag since he had never read it. He had already read through the case file, anyway.

* * * *

The next gift was in his apartment a few days later. JJ, Emily, and Penelope were there, holding it and a sealed envelope with Spencer Reid sprawled across the front.

“We know who H is and he gave us a message and your gifts,” JJ said, handing the gifts over.

“So, he said he’s pretty sure you’ve figured out who he is so over the next five days, including today, he’s going to give you gifts every morning. On Saturday, the final day, he’s going to show up here with the final gift,” Penelope said, smiling like a fool.

“He told us to tell you not to dress up because he wants to have a laidback date,” Emily added.

“So, why do I have a Johnny Depp movie?” Spencer said holding it up.

“He wants you to watch it with us. He talked to the guys too so you’ll be spending a day with them later in the week, but I don’t know when exactly.” Spencer nodded and let the girls into his apartment.

“I’m going to read the letter. You can start the movie if you like.” Spencer went to his bedroom and read the letter, hoping to confirm his suspicions about H being Aaron.  
_Dear Sweetheart,_  
_I am sure you have figured out who I am. I won’t spoil it just in case your guess is wrong. You have five days to figure out who I am before I show up at your door. Since I sent the girls you probably trust me a bit more now. I know that the nature of your job can cause a lot of unwanted stress and I’m sorry that I added to it. I hope that you are not disappointed when you figure out who I am, but you are the sweetest person I have ever had the pleasure to meet, so I doubt you will be even slightly disappointed._  
_Love,_  
_H_

Spencer smiled at the note and put it back in the envelope before returning to the girls to watch a rom-com starring Johnny Depp and Amy Locane called Cry-Baby. Spencer had to admit that he actually enjoyed the movie a lot. It wasn’t necessarily an accurate portrayal of the 1950s but Spencer got past it when he realised how attractive Johnny Depp is in the movie. The girls ended up staying the night and about half way through, Aaron called.

“Hello?”

“Hey, how are you? I just wanted to check in. I heard the girls were coming by your place.”

“Yeah, H gave them a movie and a letter to give to me. We watched the movie together and finished it about an hour ago. What are you doing tonight?” Spencer was talking quietly, and he was alone in his room but he was almost positive at least one of the girls was listening through the door.

“Oh, I’m not doing anything. Listen, I wanted to ask if you wanted to go to breakfast or lunch with me tomorrow?”

“Yeah, I’d love to. Probably lunch since the girls are probably going to keep me up all night. I don’t think you’d like to spend a lot of time with a grumpy Spencer running purely on coffee and sugar.” Spencer figured out that talking to Aaron was like talking to Maeve; it was like he could hear body language and it was so calm and comfortable. He could tell when Aaron smiled or when he silently laughed at Spencer’s jokes and it was so foreign but so lovely. Spencer realised that if Aaron wasn’t H, he was falling for the wrong man.


	2. Chapter Two

Spencer still wasn’t sure what H’s motive was. If he was an unsub and not Hotch, it could be a trap and Spencer, and the rest of the team for that matter, could be in danger. But Spencer trusted the team and if the team trusted H then he had no reason not to. Spencer’s main concern was that he is falling in love with his superior because even though he had the right to be suspicious and Blake confirmed that the style and handwriting mirrored Hotch’s, he still didn’t know for sure. And the team can’t help because they all know who he is. It’s like reading a book that everyone else has read, it’s really nice and you want to know what happens but it seems like you just can’t read it fast enough and you want to, almost need to, know how it ends. But you can’t ask anyone because everyone has already read it and they refuse to spoil it for you. The problem is, the book could end one of two ways. Either the main character gets the one they love and everyone lives happily ever after, or the main character is wrong and the book ends with happy endings only for those who didn’t deserve it. Life is different in the way that you could read that book faster but you can’t speed up time, no matter how badly Spencer wanted to. The gifts were so lovely, but he just wants to know who H is before he falls too deeply in love with Aaron. Spencer had developed a crush on Aaron during the first year of working together. Aaron had let Gideon choose to let Spencer join without consulting with him and instead of asking Spencer to leave, he gave him a trial period in which he could come along for one case and if he proved himself useful, he could stay. It just so happened that the case involved the unsub leaving quotes from obscure 15th century novels and Spencer was the only one who could identify the quotes since his mother was a 15th century literature professor.

  
Spencer waited all morning for his next gift but, after waiting since 4 am, he fell asleep at noon. A couple hours later, he woke up to someone knocking on his door, and hoping it was H, he ran to the door. When he opened it, he was hoping for Aaron, and that’s exactly who it was.

“It looks like H brought you another gift,” Aaron said, holding a small black teddy bear. Spencer smiled and took it from Aaron’s outreached hand, gesturing for him to come inside.

“What are you doing here?” Spencer asked, sitting close to him on the couch.

“I wanted to come see you and ask about H. Are you going to tell me who you think it is yet?” Spencer smiled and shook his head.

“Not until I find out who it is. Which I get to do on Saturday!”

“I know. I also know who H is and I’ll let you ask five questions but they can only be answered by yes or no, and I won’t answer if you ask if it’s a specific person.” Spencer nodded.

“Are they in the BAU?”

“Yes.”

“Are they apart of our section?”

“Yes.”

“Is it a guy?”

“Yes.”

“Do you think I’d date him?”

“I don’t know.”

“That was an opinion question so you could’ve answered either way and it could’ve been true. You’ve known me for, what, 10 years? So do you think I’d date him?”

“We’ve known each other for 12 years. And I think you’d like to be with him. If he gives gifts now, he will probably be very loving in actual relationship.”

“Okay, so I have one question left. I think I’ll save it for later.”

“How about I make you lunch since you were obviously sleeping when I got here. Have you eaten today?” Spencer shook his head.

“I was waiting for H and I fell asleep. I can’t believe I missed him again. I’ve had so many chances to catch him. He’s given me five gifts and I still don’t know who he is.”

“I don’t think he’d want you to stress about it. Oh! Here’s the note he left, I forgot to give it to you.”

“I’m going to read it, if you don’t mind?” Aaron shook his head and continued to look through Spencer’s cabinets.  
_Dear sweetheart,_  
_I remember you saying you were afraid of the dark so I decided to give you a teddy bear that you could cuddle. Have you figured it out yet? You only have about 3 days left._  
_Love,_  
_H_

“What does it say?” Aaron said nonchalantly.

“He always explains the gift. It just says it’s for when I sleep alone in the dark. He also asked if I’d figured out who he is yet. Which I don’t understand because even if I knew, he wouldn’t know if I did or not because he only sends me notes. There’s no way for me to reply. I love the notes, though, because I love handwritten notes and letters instead of text messages. Of course I don’t prefer notes and letters over texts all the time, just when someone is being sweet or romantic. Sorry, I’m rambling.” Spencer blushed and looked down.

“Your ramblings don’t bother me, remember? Do you have any food in this house, Spencer Reid?”

“I don’t shop for food very often. If I had known you’d come over and cook for me, I would’ve bought something.” Aaron sighed.

“Get dressed. We are going to my house where I actually have food.” Spencer rolled his eyes but walked off to his bedroom anyway. He decided on grey skinny jeans, a black tank top, a baggy grey cardigan, and black vans. He was still wearing his glasses since he hadn’t planned on leaving his apartment and he didn’t feel like putting in his contacts so he just ruffled his hair and put a piece of pink bubblegum in his mouth.

“Ready?” Aaron said, staring a little more than he should have. Spencer nodded his head, blowing a big, pink bubble. Aaron walked away to the door, which he held open for Spencer and then waited for Spencer to lock the door to his apartment.

“Is there a particular reason you’re acting strange?” Spencer asked after a moment of silence.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Spencer rolled his eyes.

“Sure you don’t,” Spencer said, clear sarcasm in his tone. Their lunch wasn’t anything big, but it was delicious and Spencer was glad he had accepted Aaron’s offer of coming over.

“Yeah, Garcia?” Aaron said, answering his phone.

“Alright, call the rest of the team. Spencer is with me so you don’t have to let him know. I’ll fill him in on the way,” Aaron said a couple minutes later.

“We were invited in on a case. Do you need anything from your apartment before we head to the bureau?”

“Are we going out of town? If so, I have to grab my go bag.” Spencer stood and put his sweater back on, waiting for Aaron to reply.

“We are going a couple hours away. Three teenagers didn’t come home from school yesterday or show up for school this morning. Normally this would be looked over but last month the same thing happened in another city.” Aaron and Spencer got into the car and headed to the bureau.

* * * *

The case went well. All six teens were found alive, but they had been tortured. Spencer noticed a pattern with the victims, which ultimately led to the discovery of the unsub. When he had made the connection, Aaron was the only one in the room, and he had hugged Spencer before rushing out of the room to get the others. By the time they got back, Spencer was flustered and they all laughed, since they rarely saw the genius blush, before urging him on. While on the case, which only lasted a day and a half, Spencer received one gift, but he was expecting to find one when he arrived at home. He had decided not to open the gift bag until he got home, and every minute that passed made him more nervous.

Spencer was sitting in the passenger seat of the SVU, with Hotch driving and Morgan and Rossi sitting in the backseat, talking about old movies. Eventually, Spencer opened the gift bag and read the letter.

_Dear sweetheart,_  
_I know that we are on a case and that you won’t be able to enjoy this gift right away but it’s a movie based on Alan Turing’s life. I thought you’d like to have a movie night with the guys, but I wanted to give you a movie that you’d like. I hope you like it. There are only two days left. Do you know who I am, yet?_  
_Love,_  
_H_

“What did you get? H said that it’d be a movie,” Derek asked.

“It’s The Imitation Game with Benedict Cumberbatch. It’s about Alan Turing, who was arrested in 1952 for ‘gross indecency’ because he was gay. I’ve wanted to watch this for awhile, I just hadn’t gotten around to buying it. Are you all free tonight to watch it?” Spencer said, smiling brightly.

“The only thing waiting on me is a bottle of wine so I’ll be there,” David joked.

“I have nothing planned,” Derek said, eyes glued to his phone.

“Well, how about you, Hotch?” Spencer asked hopefully.

“Jess has Jack for the night so I guess I’m free as well.” Aaron glanced away from the road to smile at Spencer, then back.

“Yay! I’ll probably have another gift at my apartment so if you find it, please give it to me. I can’t believe I only have a day left until I get to meet H.”  
Spencer and Aaron were the only ones awake by the time the movie was over, Derek had fallen asleep sitting on the couch next to Spencer and Dave had fallen asleep in the armchair.

“Should I wake them? I can give them blankets and pillows.”

“I’ll wake them up, Spence. You can go get blankets and pillows.” Spencer nodded and left the room. When he came back, Aaron handed him the seventh gift.

“It was by the door.”

“Oh, okay. Um, here. Can you…?” Aaron nodded and left.

_Dear sweetheart,_  
_This is the final gift before we meet. I hope you’re not disappointed. This CD is filled with various genres of music that I compiled for you. I thought you would like to extend your music library. I didn’t come up with all these songs on my own, of course. The team helped. I don’t know if you’ll enjoy all the songs but I figured you would at least find one. I will see you tomorrow._  
_Love,_  
_H_

  
Spencer pulled the CD from the bag and looked at the paper on the cover which said: _To my sweetheart; from your H_. He grinned from ear to ear, excited to see if his suspicions were right.

“Hey, Spence, do you mind if I sleep in here? Dave is on the couch and Derek is on the floor so there’s not much room left,” Aaron said quietly as he walked into the room.

“Yeah, sure. This bed is huge anyway. I’ll sleep by the wall.” Spencer put the gifts away and moved over to the side of the bed, waiting for Aaron to climb in next to him.

“Goodnight, Spencer,” Aaron whispered.

“Goodnight, Aaron.”


	3. Chapter Three

When Spencer woke up, the bed was empty. At first, he thought that last night had been a dream, but he heard the other three laughing and talking on the opposite side of his bedroom door. A smile graced his lips as he stood from his bed with his back to the door. He could hear the soft sound of approaching footsteps, but he didn’t care since he assumed it would be Aaron or Derek, both of whom he was comfortable with.

“Good morning. I made breakfast,” Aaron said quietly from the doorway.

“I thought I didn’t have any food?” Spencer teased.

“I bought some. I wanted coffee this morning but you were out.”

“Well, thank you. What did you make?” Spencer shivered, not yet used to the room’s temperature after leaving his bed.

“I made a couple things, since Dave and Derek couldn’t make up their minds and I wasn’t sure what you wanted.” Spencer nodded in response and followed Aaron to the kitchen and dining area.

The men enjoyed their morning together, which they rarely got to say. They all loved their job, of course, but it definitely made their personal lives hard. Even spending time with each other was hard.

* * * *

By noon, everyone had gone home and Spencer was home alone. Later that night, while he was anxiously waiting for H, he heard his phone ping from a text.

_From: H_  
_Sweetheart, I’ll be at you apartment in about a half hour. Don’t worry about dressing up. We aren’t going out anywhere, just enjoying some take out._

Spencer started freaking out, to put it lightly. He was pacing back and forth, breathing quickly. He has waited to meet H for nearly three weeks. His mind raced with the thought of what to wear, how to do his hair, whether or not to try to clean his entire apartment. Eventually he decided to wear a light blue button up and black skinny jeans. He left his hair alone, since it was clean and brushed already.

He tried to calm himself for about five minutes when he heard someone walk up the stairs and knock on his door. Spencer took a deep breath and opened the door.

“Hey, sweetheart.” Spencer heard the voice but couldn’t bring himself to look at its source. After a couple seconds, though, he looked up to see Aaron. Spencer let go of a breath he didn’t know he was holding.

“Aaron,” Spencer breathed, smiling brightly. He let Aaron enter his apartment, and took the flowers and chocolates, both of which made him grin, to his kitchen.

“I think it’s safe to say that you aren’t disappointed that it’s me,” Aaron said, walking up behind Spencer and placing his hands ever so lightly on Spencer’s hips.

“Nope. I was hoping it was you.” Spencer was clearly blushing when Aaron spun him around.

“Crushing on your boss? I never thought you would.” If the red in Spencer’s cheeks wasn’t bright before, it is now.

“I can’t help it that my boss is so attractive. Plus, he made the first move.” Spencer sauntered off, leaving Aaron dazed in the kitchen.

“Do you want to eat then? I got Indian take out,” Aaron said, pointing to a couple bags on the table.

“Wait, I have one question left. Remember?” Aaron smiled at Spencer and nodded, waiting for him to continue.

“How long have you been crushing on me?”

“I’ve always thought you were attractive, Spencer. That’s part of the reason Haley and I didn’t work out. I fell in love in with someone else. Though she was sleeping with someone else. I would much rather be with you.” Spencer smiled and leaned up to kiss Aaron softly.

“I’d much rather you be with me, too.”


End file.
